Duke Of Zuke

Aponeic

Duke Of Zuke is the nom de plume of London based composer, guitarist and cineaste Clint Trofa, and ‘Aponeic’ is his second release under this guise. The EP, released by London art experimental cassette label Tombed Visions, is a five track exploration of loops, mood and audio tapestry that stem from a basic brief; to generate compositional mood from a simple guitar setup, with minimal effects usage.

We can only assume the experiment was a success, as the material is engaging. The deliberate approach of using mostly unprocessed guitar means that no new ground is broken in presentation, but the execution is vibrant, melodic and gritty. The description that accompanies the EP on Bandcamp makes much mention of the cinematic quality of the various pieces, and the widescreen aspect is extremely noticeable.

In abandoning some of his previous production and compositional techniques, Trofa appears to have landed on a very effective and direct way of putting his ideas across but it may be that some subtlety has been lost along the way. Bravery, though, will always trump subtlety, and Trofa should be congratulated for the approach. Bruised-blue melancholy may not be to the taste of some; but no one can argue a lack of strength in the methodology.